PCCC YEAR END ROUNDUP from BOLDPROGRESSIVES.ORG 30DEZ11

THIS is why I support the PCCC and in this coming year of economic and electoral uncertainty I hope you will consider becoming a supporter too!

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Chip in $3 to continue our effective activism in 2012.

It's been a great year. The Nation magazine just called our Draft Elizabeth Warren effort the "Most Valuable Campaign of 2011."
Before the new year begins, we wanted to send you an insider peek at our accomplishments together. (See list below.) Every day, over 850,000 of us fought hard for our progressive values -- and it shows.
Most importantly, we wanted to say thank you. Thank you for caring so deeply about our country. Thank you for taking action. And thanks for being a bold progressive!
-- The PCCC Team (Stephanie, Adam, Michael, Forrest, Keauna, Amanda, Jason, Drew, Kristiane, Conor, Jordan, Robyn, Neil, Matt, Ethan, Dheeraj, Kari, Jeff, Taylor, Andrew, Zach, Karen, TJ, Jake, and DeVeria)

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(Appreciate this year's activism? Chip in $3 to continue our effective activism in 2012.)

Draft Warren house party.

1) Draft Elizabeth Warren. In 2010, we led the successful grassroots effort to have Elizabeth Warren set up the new consumer protection agency.
This year, when she wasn't appointed to permanently lead it, we launched the Draft Elizabeth Warren for Senate campaign and raised over $100,000 for Warren before she even jumped into the race. Matt from our team worked with hundreds of volunteers across Massachusetts to hold Draft Elizabeth Warren house parties, showing her large grassroots support. And it worked! Elizabeth Warren is now seven points ahead of Scott Brown -- and thousands of members like you have donated a whopping $600,000 to her campaign!
2) Wisconsin recall victories: When Gov. Scott Walker attacked workers, we had to get involved. Members like you made over 380,000 calls to Wisconsin voters during the recall elections and worked 1,743 local volunteer shifts. With our friends at Democracy for America, we made 5 powerful TV ads that aired over 18,000 times -- plus radio ads, online ads, and robo-calls. Keauna from our team moved to Madison to assist local activists while the rest of us worked with volunteers across the nation. And we won! Together, we recalled two Republican senators and took away Gov. Walker's working majority in the Senate.
(Appreciate this effective activism? Chip in $3 to continue our national program in 2012.)
3) Awesome House candidates. Elizabeth Warren will need allies in Congress. We've been busy finding, vetting, and endorsing wonderful progressive candidates around the country, particularly those in competitive primaries for open seats. So far we've endorsed Eric Griego (NM-01), Annie Kuster (NH-02), Chris Donovan (CT-05) and Ilya Sheyman (IL-10), with more to come.  

When making endorsements, we pick candidates who are bold progressives with a competent campaign and a plan to win. Stephanie and Adam interview each candidate under consideration. Jason and Kari from our team help endorsed candidates find online directors and finance directors. In October, we sponsored a full-day media training for progressive candidates -- followed by a joint petition delivery to John Boehner's office the next day, which made national news. So far, members like you have donated $175,000 to our 4 endorsed House candidates!

One of the nation's first "Move Your Money" events!

4) Banxodus! We worked with Rep. Brad Miller (D-NC) on a bill making it easier to move your money from big Wall Street banks. Meanwhile, Kristiane from our team organized one of the first "Move Your Money" events in the nation, and every local TV station in Portland, Oregon showed up!
But we realized there was another obstacle to moving your money -- it's hard to find a good bank. So Ethan and Michael from our tech team built Banxodus.org, a great tool to help folks find good local banks. So far, 162,242 people have used Banxodus to search for a new bank in their area.
5) Saving Medicare. When Rep. Paul Ryan (R-WI) proposed ending Medicare, we worked with Ryan's Democratic opponent, Rob Zerban, to deliver over 65,000 signatures to Ryan's campaign office, creating local media pressure on Ryan. We also held other House Republicans accountable when they voted for Ryan’s plan. We launched a hard-hitting TV ad against Rep. Charlie Bass (R-NH). Bass now faces huge disapproval numbers and a strong election challenge from progressive favorite Annie Kuster.

Delivering 50,000 notes directly to Sen. Reid.

6) Saving Social Security. When Lindsey Graham (R-SC) called for cuts to Social Security benefits, we launched a powerful TV ad featuring one of his constituents holding him accountable. When Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV) passionately defended Social Security, we rewarded him with over 50,000 thank you notes -- and two of our retired members from Nevada flew to Washington to personally present them! Sen. Reid promised at our joint press conference to keep Social Security benefits "off the table" -- and he's stuck to his word.
7) Holding Democrats accountable. When the New York Times reported that President Obama put Social Security and Medicare benefit cuts on the table in negotiations, we needed grassroots pressure. Over 200,000 members pledged not to donate or volunteer for any Democratic politician who joined Republicans in cutting these vital benefits. Chicago-area members, including our press secretary Neil, personally delivered these pledges to Obama's headquarters.

The Associated Press, MSNBC, ABC, CBS, and others covered the event. MSNBC's Lawrence O'Donnell called us the “most effective progressive objectors” to benefit cuts and said our grassroots pressure was "actually helping the president's negotiating position" against Republicans. And we won! Social Security and Medicare benefits were not cut.
8) Fighting Wall Street immunity. Wall Street banks are pushing for a deal with the Department of Justice and state Attorneys General that would give the banks immunity -- for crimes that haven't even been investigated yet! So far, 85,000 members like you have become "citizen signers" of Rep. Tammy Baldwin's (D-WI) resolution opposing this deal. Conor and Jordan from our team worked the halls of Congress while thousands of us made phone calls. Together, these efforts increased Baldwin's co-sponsors from 27 to 70.
Meanwhile, Kentucky Attorney General Jack Conway announced his opposition to the deal on our email list! And working with our partners at CREDO Action, we delivered petitions to Attorney General Kamala Harris in California. The next day, she announced she would oppose the deal. Momentum!

9) Saving the Internet! Congress is considering a bill that would end the Internet as we know it -- giving the government and private corporations the ability to take down websites without due process. This is a threat to free speech and innovation. We sponsored a joint petition with Reddit and over 100,000 people took action. Last week, a massive grassroots outpouring scuttled a planned vote and killed this proposal for the year. (It will be back next year -- and we'll keep fighting.)
10) PCCC growth: Holy cow, we've grown! This year, we hired a Chief of Staff (Amanda), three new members of our technology team (Ethan, Dheeraj, TJ), a new press team (Neil, Matt), new grassroots organizers (Kristiane, Jake), a new team of Capitol Hill organizers (Conor, Jordan, Robyn), and some great fellows! Plus, Michael (our very first employee!) took on a new role as Chief Information Officer, overseeing projects like Banxodus.org and other fun stuff coming in 2012!
We keep overhead costs incredibly low so member donations are used for organizing. We work out of our homes or coffee shops. When we travel, we ask local members for housing to reduce costs. (Thank you to all our wonderful hosts!)
In 2012, there are elections to win, legislation to pass, and more people to organize -- please consider chipping in $3 to continue our effective activism.